The Scottish Gallery Book Club - July 2021: Laidlaw by William McIlvanney

It's our pleasure to be working in collaboration with The Scottish Gallery to help run The Scottish Gallery Book Club, a new literary companion for their monthly event programming.

Each month, the accompanying book will be a complimentary selection for themes and ideas explored within the new exhibition. We invite you, as readers and appreciators of the arts, to read the book and feedback your thoughts to The Scottish Gallery in a direct message on Instagram. They will feature reader responses in their highlights or stories.

This month, we have picked a title to accompany Alexander Goudie's exhibition An Artist's Life, Act I (exhibition running from 1st July - 24th July 2021). An Artist’s Life, Act I, charts his beginnings in post-war Paisley in the 1940s, student years at Glasgow School of Art in the 1950s and his early career - a period in which Goudie embarked upon a life-long project to document the evolving landscape and culture of his wife’s homeland, Brittany.

Our selections for the July 2021 book club are Laidlaw by William McIlvanney & Divided City by Theresa Breslin

Laidlaw by William McIlvanney:

When a young woman is found murdered in Glasgow's Kelvingrove Park, only one man stands a chance of finding her killer. Jack Laidlaw. He is a man of contrasts, ravaged by inner demons but driven by a deep compassion for the violent criminals in Glasgow's underworld. But will Laidlaw's unorthodox methods get him to the killer in time, when the victim's father is baying for blood? Acclaimed for its corrosive wit, dark themes and original maverick detective, the Laidlaw trilogy has earned the status of classic crime fiction.

Divided City by Theresa Breslin (which can be purchased at this link):

It's Glasgow. And its May - the marching season. The Orange Walks have begun. Graham doesn't want to be involved. He just wants to play football with his new mate, Joe. But when he witnesses a shocking moment of violence, suddenly he and Joe are involved. With Catholics, and with Protestants. With a young Muslim asylum-seeker, and his girlfriend. With all the old rivalries - and fears. A fabulous book for children 9+, this never patronises its audience about some of the harsher realities of urban life - while never compromising on a truly compelling story.